Scarlet Spring
by simmic
Summary: For years, he had tried to win the affections of Haruko, little did he know that the one for him turned out to be the most unlikeliest of candidates. NON-YAOI
1. Prologue: What becomes of snow

**SCARLET SPRING**

_**BY SIMMIC**_

**PROLOGUE: WHAT BECOMES OF SNOW**

And in the corridor he waited... A once fearless child, he now stood outside the bedroom, hands clutched tightly around the doorframe, head downcast. A wraith-like voice dared him to take a glance around the room.

He did.

A small futon lay in one corner of the room, barely concealing the broken tatami mat under it. By its side, several boxes were stacked together to form an end table. A ray of light filtered into the dark and gloomy room from a small window on the right. The room would have been no different from any other east facing room on that street had there not been a frail, almost transparent figure kneeling in front of the window.

His okaasan.

_No..._

He wanted to run away.

-Too late.

"Aisoku."

He stopped in his tracks, holding back the hot tears welling in his eyes. _To deny or not to deny_ hovering in his head. He wanted to ignore that voice, yet he could not... Simply because it was the same voice that beckoned him to sleep every night, the one that told him how much she loved him every chance there was, the voice he waited so eagerly to hear again.

He looked into her eyes and saw a deep sadness, a soul in mourning. And yet there was still a small flame burning from within, a splinter of hope, a relentless spirit that could only be that of a proud mother's love for her son.

"Okaaaasaaann!" the little boy exclaimed, rushing towards his mother and wrapping his tiny arms around her in a tight embrace.

A warm smile crept across his mother's lips as she ran her slender fingers through her son's already ruffled hair and planted a tender kiss on his forehead.

They stayed like this for a long time, the child's head resting near her heart, savouring every second of each other's company that they had left. A strong gust of wind bellowed outside whilst a whisper of snow crept in through the gap in the windowsill.

"Hanii-chan," she said, breaking the silence. "When the snow melts... what does it become?"

A look of surprise flashed across the child's face, then one of confusion as he pondered the matter. Then he proclaimed loudly, "Water...it becomes water of course!"

"No." His mother sighed and then a mischievous grin flickered across her face. "When the snow melts...it becomes spring."

The simple child drew out a deep breath and a comfortable giggle broke out among the two of them. Moments later, he emitted a great big lion-like yawn. The yawn was contagious, as she did likewise.

He must have fallen asleep for the room was now completely dark. He remembered dreaming. A bizarre dream it was. Alone in a white forest, the boy was searching for something, yet he was unsure of what it was. The ground gave way beneath him and he plummeted through the deep snow. He kept falling and falling, yet the only thing he could do was scream.

A flash of light.

A voice, kind and pleading, came from above, calling out to him.

"_Remember, no matter what happens, no matter how deep the snow gets, spring will always come. Promise me that you will never stop looking for that first sign of spring... No matter what, promise me." _

_Okaasan..._ he realised.

Stretching out his arms, he tried to grab onto something, yet all he felt was air and snow. He tried again and again, and finally, he felt his fingers tighten around something solid... a branch.

Then he felt himself being pulled up, higher and higher until he was back to where he had started. Lying on the ground for a long time, he repeated the same set of words again and again... "I promise."

He turned his head and saw his okaasan lying next to him. She looked so beautiful, sleeping peacefully, that he decided to just sit there and wait for her to wake up.

But she never did.

As Hanii-chan grew up, his memory of her grew fainter and fainter. First he forgot her scent and then her voice and finally her appearance. But he never stopped searching for the first signs of spring, not after the first time he failed, nor the second, or third, or even the fiftieth. Yet when it seemed as if he had finally found his spring, he realised that he was looking at the wrong direction, for he had long forgotten what spring was.

Okaasan: mother

Aisoku: beloved son

Hanii: Honey

**Disclaimer: Most of the characters belong to Inoue-san, idea of what becomes of snow comes from "Fruits Basket"**

**Authoress' Note: **Well, this marks the beginning of my very first fan fiction. I know that it is quite rude to ask people for favours the very first time you meet them but PLEASE REVIEW (just so I have an idea of how I'm going and um...for motivation)

**Next chapter: **Meet the love interest


	2. Chapter 1: Fallen

**CHAPTER 1: FALLEN**

**Seeking…**

A man of beauty and masculinity

Hair blacker than coal

Skin purer than snow

Eyes bluer than the deepest ocean.

Deadly precision

Lightning speed

One who does not fear, but embraces a challenge

A modest man with silent confidence

The epitome of perfection

**Target…**

_Rukawa Kaede_

**Mission status…**

_FAIL_

_

* * *

__Rukawa…_

The ball flew past me and so did he.

_Rukawa…_

Sweat glistening on his pale skin, his eyes fixed only on his target, arms outstretched…

Flying…almost.

"Baka kit…"

_Rukawa_…

His graceful fingers felt the rough texture of his target and with one smooth movement, he slapped the ball back into the court.

_Rukawa…_

He turned towards me with a look of victory on his face, knowing he's just won my heart.

Then… THUD!

Flesh fell upon flesh.

My legs gave way under the impact and I felt myself fall like a stack of loose cushions. My back felt the cold hard surface of the timber floor and the cracking sound of bones breaking immediately followed.

But I felt no pain. Perhaps I was too paralysed by shock that my brain could no longer function properly. Perhaps I had even hit my head when I fell down. Or perhaps it was because I never had anyone lie on me like this before. Not to mention that this was a man, a rather heavy man.

It appeared he was just as shocked that _I_ was in _his _way! So there we were, just laying there, trying to pass the time by staring deeply into each other's eyes while our bodies and minds recovered.

His brown eyes were still burning with energy.

_Wait_…

_Did I just say BROWN eyes!_

And that's when I noticed… the flaming red hair… those arrogant lips…

_OMG!_

_I'm being crushed to death by the DEVIL himself!_

It was at that moment that the pain washed over me and I felt every muscle in my body start to twitch and spasm.

My eyes must've grown so wide that it scared the devil himself. He released me from his grasp and jumped up.

"_Whaaaa! Baka kitsune! That was my ball!" _

And that was the last thing I heard the devil say before the air escaped from my lungs and _darkness_ _fell_.

* * *

The basketball players gathered around the fallen pair, as did the Rukawa brigade. They had been lying there, not moving for a while already. A while _too _long in the fan girls' opinion.

"You're crushing her, pervert!" one of them squealed.

"You're squashing her, Baka!" the other one followed.

A third squeal would've normally followed had the third member of the brigade not been the one being crushed and squashed by the "perverted baka".

However, there was still no movement from either party.

In an act of desperation, the leader of the Rukawa brigade grabbed the red head's jersey and tugged with all her might, trying to pull him up. Her companion soon joined her and the two of them tugged, slapped and cursed the self proclaimed tensai. The crowd that had gathered around them were either too shocked or too scared to do anything.

Then, without warning, Sakuragi Hanamichi jumped up and the two members of the infamous fan club jolted backwards and landed on the floor in fear. Hanamichi scanned the crowd around him like a preying lion and stopped when he spotted the familiar messy black hair and long blue eyes. And as if oblivious to the member of the brigade that he had flattened or the ones that had just attacked him, he stared only at his nemesis as his strange wail filled the room.

"_Waaaa! Baka kitsune! That was my ball!"_

The hot-headed member of Shohoku basketball team was just about to trudge back to court and tell everyone off for lazing around when he felt cold fingers grasp his leg. He looked down and saw her, eyes wide yet looking into nothing and mouth gaping open, seemingly wanting to say something. Yet no noise came out of the girl who had yelled at him so many times in the past. Her two best friends were also on the floor, kneeling down beside her, crying pools of tears.

"Something's wrong with her," cried Ka, making an intelligent observation.

"Yeah," cried Ru, backing up her leader's theory.

"Ahhhhh!" Ru and Ka screamed when they saw Hanamichi's head inches away from theirs screaming,

"GEMMMEEEMERAG!"

"Whaaaaaa!" they screamed again, and once again Hanamichi cried, "GEMMMEEEMERAG!", a little more urgently this time.

They continued this for a few seconds, each time screaming louder than the last until both parties began to run out of breath. Sakuragi then took Ka by the shoulders and treated her to his death stare which immediately froze her on the spot. Then he slowly whispered in her ear, "Your friend is having a heart attack, get me her bag."

The words didn't take long to register, and soon, Ka was on her feet and rushing out the entrance, returning shortly with Wa's bag. She shivered when she saw the red head cradling Wa's head but followed his instructions nevertheless when he told her to look inside for a bottle of pills which she eventually found in one of the bag's secret compartments. She handed it to Hanamichi, who had already ordered someone to bring him a glass of water, and he promptly fed Wa the pill.

Wa's eyes widened one more time before her body started to loosen up and her facial features relaxed. The crowd let out a deep breath as they watched her sleeping on the gym floor taking slow but even breaths.

"Is she dead?" Ru was about to ask when she was interrupted by another voice down by the gym entrance.

"The ambulance is here."

* * *

Baka: Idiot

Kitsune: Fox

Tensai: Genius

* * *

**Disclaimer: Most of the characters belong to Inoue-san, I've only delved deeper into their characters.**

**Authoress' Note: **Thanks to everyone who has reviewed.

Yun Fei: Yes, the little boy is Sakuragi. In the anime, 'spring' was used to represent love. When Sakuragi first saw Haruko, he cheered "My spring is here! My spring is here!" So finding spring would be like finding that piece of unconditional love that he lost when his mother died and maybea little more?


	3. Chapter 2: My name is

**CHAPTER 2: MY NAME IS…**

Wa was born a rather blunt girl. She spoke her mind often and clearly.

When her preschool teacher refused to give her the extra star she thought she thoroughly deserved, Wa told him exactly how she felt about him. And while her teacher was quite surprised (and secretly impressed) by this little preschooler's arguments, he nevertheless gave her detention for embarrassing him in front of the class.

"_No one likes a smart ass," one of her classmates said under his breath. _

When her grandfather favoured his male grandchildren over the female, she accused him of being a chauvinist and ungrateful to the woman who gave birth to him. She would've continued with further accusations, had he not fallen to the ground, suffering from a heart attack.

"_Guess no one has ever taught her manners," one of her aunties whispered to another, who added, "Or respect." _

When her father gambled away their family's savings, she told her father how disappointed she was in him and how she wished she had a more decent man for a father. But that night, she saw her mother in the living room softly crying herself to sleep, muttering,

"_Oh, I am such a bad mother."_

Thus from a very young age, due to her unfortunately good hearing, Wa learnt _not_ to speak her mind. Since keeping all her feelings bottled up was rather psychologically damaging, Wa then learnt not to think. Learning not to think turned out to be harder than she thought, so then she tried to be subtle. But all this time not thinking must have resulted in some permanent damage, and she became so subtle that even _she_ couldn't tell whether she was trying to be subtle or not. Come to think of it, she wasn't even sure what subtle really meant anymore. Perhaps she had never really known in the first place.

* * *

_Flashback…_

_April, Shohoku High School _

It was the second day of the new school term.

The hallways were filled with the usual buzz of students chattering and giggling as they filed out of the classrooms and off to lunch.

However to Hiroyasu Keitami, the corridor was quiet.

She stood alone, head bent down, trapped in her own ghostly world. Forms flitted through the narrow space, but never stopped. And she just stood there, watching as the figures passed her, desperately seeking to connect…

And then HE appeared and changed her life.

She felt his presence first.

He felt tall…really tall…quite possibly a head or more than her.

At almost 170cm, Keitami was taller than most girls in her grade and indeed most guys, so this was quite a rare occurrence.

When Keitami turned to look at him, her heart stopped for a few seconds when she realised that apart from being tall, he was also really handsome…agonisingly handsome.

For standing before Keitami was quite possibly the most beautiful man she had ever seen. His straight raven black hair fell casually just above his eyes. He had high cheekbones and the most delicate and yet obviously masculine features. His startling blue eyes appeared to bore right into her soul even though he was looking elsewhere...

Unfamiliar feelings washed over her as she felt herself unable to look away. It appeared that everything, sight and sound, had just melted away, and there was just the two of them. Her heart was pounding at an impossible rate and her face was heating up as an unexplainable feeling of excitement bloomed within her. She didn't even realise that she was staring at his back…

"So perfect," she heard a familiar voice say, which was followed with a silent "oh crap" when she realised it was hers.

Then, without even time to recover from her own embarrassment, Keitami felt someone grab her arm and pull her towards them.

It was a girl.

She had short light brown hair and was half a head shorter than Keitami. The most anyone could say about her was 'cute'

Just like half the girls in the school.

In fact, there was probably nothing distinguishing about this stranger had her face not so strongly resembled a beetroot.

Keitami would've snickered had she not suspected that her face was a similar shade.

The short-haired girl softly nudged her in the waist, winked and said, "Tell me about it!"

Keitami felt her face redden even more.

Without warning, a second hand grabbed her other arm and she turned to face another girl.

'Oh great,' Keitami thought. 'Now the whole school knows…'

This girl was a little taller than the first, had two brown pigtails and bangs that appeared to be cut just a little too short.

"Is he also a sophomore like us?" the pigtailed girl asked Keitami and the short-haired girl.

"Oh, I'm not a sophomore!" Keitami exclaimed, before she blushed once again and muttered, "I'm only a first year."

The short-haired girl seemed particularly surprised by this new revelation.

"But you're so tall!"

The pigtailed girl merely shook her head lightly and gave Keitami a knowing look.

'Don't worry about her…' the look appeared to say.

Then the pigtailed girl's face brightened and she offered Keitami her hand.

"The name's Matsushita Kazuko and my friend over here is Yamamoto Rumiko." And then in a lower voice she added with a wink, "Always a pleasure meeting someone who shows the same tastes and interests as myself."

Keitami felt another blush coming when she took on the full meaning of Kazuko's last comment but managed to blurt out her name.

_Brrrrriiing… _

The morning class bell rang and Keitami was forced to depart from Kazuko and Rumiko. But before she left, Kazuko whispered in her ear, "Meet us at the gym at lunchtime. I heard Rukawa-kun is going to be there."

She winked again and walked arm in arm with her friend down the corridor, leaving Keitami alone once more.

Keitami puzzled over what had happened. She assumed Rukawa-kun was the boy that she had just spotted and that she was going to see him again with her new friends.

'Ahh…friends,' Keitami thought. 'I could get used to that word.'

And that was the day that the Rukawa brigade unofficially began.

* * *

_Another flashback…_

_Not too long ago…_

Three girls were huddled in a triangle in their pyjamas, whispering and giggling. The door was safely locked to keep unwelcome guests from hearing any secrets that might be traded during the sleepover party.

"Yeah, great idea Ka," Wa said in a rather deadpan tone.

"Of course," Ka said excitedly, failing to hear the hint of sarcasm in Wa's voice. "We'll be on the frontline to support Rukawa as he makes ALL his shots!"

"Remember the routine girls?"

"Uh huh," Ru and Wa nodded like twins.

The three rose from their spots and did a series of jumps and squeals.

"Rukawa! Rukawa! Love me, Love me Rukawa!" the three girls screeched with passion, before they all collapsed on the floor again, giggling with exhaustion.

…

"Great!"

* * *

"Oh my god, is she awake?" I heard a familiar female voice ask as I opened my tired eyes and the room came into focus. Everything looked so white, the place smelt like death and random memories were beginning to fade away again.

"Am I dead?" I asked, groggily.

"Of course not dearest Wa-chan! You're in hospital," Ka-chan came into view and she gently wrapped her arms around my shoulders. "We would never let anything like that happen to you."

"Even if it means fighting that _scary_ baka," Ru added.

I raised an eyebrow. "You two attacked Sakuragi?"

"Yup," Ka-chan said proudly. "But it wasn't like we had much of a choice. You were getting squashed to death and he wasn't exactly budging in his out-of-it state. As president and vice president of the Rukawa brigade as well as official best friends of yours, we _had_ to do _something_."

"Oh you guys," I said softly, quite moved by their loyalty and too tired to speak any louder.

"You looked so helpless under him, almost as bad as when we first saved you in the general hall when you were a first year," Ka continued. "You looked so sad, so directionless, so hopeless at that time as well. But when we saw you light up just a little when you saw Rukawa-kun, we realised that at least you had good taste…so we decided to rescue you."

'Oh my…' I thought.

"Oh, by the way Wa-chan," Ru said, looking embarrassed. "The doctor told us you can leave when you wake up, but you need to register at the reception area first. Ka-chan and I couldn't exactly do it for you cause we… umm… don't exactly remember your real name…"

Ka-chan immediately gave Ru-chan the evil eye. I was feeling equally embarrassed. The truth was, I couldn't really recall Ka-chan's and Ru-chan's real names either. When we had first established the Rukawa brigade, we had encouraged everyone to call us by the names Ru-chan, Ka-chan and Wa-chan respectively. Our parents and teachers originally dismissed this idea as ridiculous and just a phase that would eventually pass over. However, when it didn't, and we continued to correct them every time they called us by our real names, they finally relented just to shut us up.

"Why don't you two wait for me outside while I change," I said as I looked at the white cotton hospital gown I was wearing.

Ru-chan and Ka-chan were still arguing as they walked out.

"You can't be that direct with her!" Ka-chan was saying in a low tone.

"Well, what was I supposed to say?" Ru-chan retorted.

Ka-chan was just about to hiss something insulting to Ru-chan when suddenly, she turned towards me and flashed me a warm smile.

"Oh by the way Wa-chan, sorry about the plan. I suppose being on the frontline wasn't as effective as we hoped."

Then they both disappeared through the doorway. For a few moments, the sounds of their bickering lingered, until they gradually faded away.

I frowned.

_My name is…_

_Hmmmm…_

A gust of wind bellowed outside and appeared to be singing strange lyrics as it swept through the bony, leafless branches of the trees.

"_Keitami_," it appeared to whisper.

_Keitami_…

_Hmm…_

_My name is…_

Hiroyasu Keitami.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Most of the characters belong to Inoue-san, I just delve deeper into their character**

**Authoress' Note: **Again, a huge thanks to all those who reviewed especially my lovely regular reviewers. I was so motivated this time that it didn't actually take months for me to produce another chapter. I suppose the fact that I am still in my uni break has something to do with it too. A gigantic thanks to my lovely beta readers iced T and Swifty for unsticking me during writers block and gradually teaching me to gain a respect for commas.

celestialmaiden: I'm not sure if she is the prettiest one to everyone, but if you are also referring to the tallest brigade member with really long hair, then yes

Yun Fei: Hehe…well when it comes to Sakuragi, nothing can be expected. He is always full of surprises. I cant really reveal how he knows what to do yet but hint it is semi-related to how he also managed to deal with Anzai having a heart attack quite well.

As to who the main character is, Its probably going to be Wa-chan for a while. Might shift to Sakuragi, or Rukawa. I think mainly Sakuragi-OC but I do want to explore Rukawa's character as well so possibly it would also be Rukawa-OC or a triangle? Which ones do you guys prefer?

I'm thinking of using a technique where I go behind the character's minds (just the mains ones) and the perspective changes in different chapters so we learn a little more about these characters. Do you think this might be interesting? Or too confusing?

Iced T: Ah yes…I miss voices…

momo: its coming out now dude :p


	4. Chapter 3: Abandoned

**CHAPTER 3: ABANDONED**

_I run. You scatter._

_I seek. You hide._

_And here I stand about to cry yet there isn't even an echo of your good bye. _

I rushed home today. From the hospital. I had another attack. The doctor told me to get plenty of rest and yet I still rushed home because I knew I was late and I didn't want you to get too hungry. You never did like to cook and you were so happy when you discovered that I had a talent for it. You encouraged me to cook and to clean, saying that you were giving me the opportunity to perfect these talents of mine and I never complained. After all, you are my family, mum _and_ dad even though you don't always respect that term or acknowledge the responsibilities attached to it.

I needed you today. Or perhaps I just needed _someone_ to go to for comfort, to sulk and whine to. My friends would not understand for they only have the attention span of a gold fish for matters non-Rukawa related. And so there was only you, because you are family.

_You're a strong kid, _you once told me when I fell down on the pavement and started crying. I reached for you and yet you just told me that I was strong. Perhaps that was your type of encouragement or perhaps you just didn't want to get your clothes dirty.

I wasn't strong then and I cried for a good five minutes before I realised that you weren't getting up from the bench. And so I picked myself up. And I became a little stronger.

And over the years, all the moments, I became stronger and stronger until I didn't reach for your hand anymore. But you know what? Even strong people break down sometimes. And today is one of those days. Yet, when I arrived home today, there isn't even a shadow left of you. Only a letter… only a letter…

I watch as it flickers in the ashtray, dancing in the flames that slowly engulf it.

How can you do this to me? You promised not to do this again. Not to get involved in things like that, not to abandon me. And yet, here I am abandoned. Alone with nothing but this letter that you have left me.

But that soon, shall leave me too…

I waited until the last of the letter disintegrated into ash, then grabbed my backpack. At the same time I heard a knock at the front door.

_Uh oh…_

"Anybody home?" a muffled voice sneered.

I opened the nearest window and threw my backpack through it.

Knock, knock. "I know you are in there, Hiroyasu." Another voice whistled and this was followed by laughter from at least two others.

I gasped, then lifted one of my legs out of the window.

Knock, knock, knock. There was silence for a moment and then THUD! Which was followed by a dreadful Crrrreeeeak!

I bumped my head on the window as I heard the front door give way slightly. The "guests" appeared to be growing impatient. But then again so was I. My head was already throbbing from the fall earlier (_damn redheaded baka_) and this new bump wasn't really helping. I could practically feel my own IQ dropping as I struggled to fit through the small opening. If only they would break down my door more quietly so I could concentrate. Yep. IQ was definitely decreasing rapidly.

Another Crrrreeeeak as one of the guests ran against the door. The whole house appeared to shake under the impact and the window loosened up and fell on my shoulders. I lifted it back up only to have it fall down again as I heard yet another THUD. I tried to get through the window again and again, however _they_ were just as persistent with each THUD louder and more nerve wracking (for me at least) than the last. More laughter followed from the group although I really couldn't see the humour of it all at the moment.

I had just managed to squeeze myself through the window when I heard one last THUD.

_Ah… poor door._

I didn't have time to pray for the unfortunate and unappreciated door that had just had its life cut short though as I quickly began crawling away. After all, I had no intention of sharing the same fate.

* * *

I tapped my fingers nervously on the public phone and delved deep into my pockets. Only a few coins, not even enough for a burger.

_Call this uncle. He will be able to help you._

I dialled the number I had memorised from the letter and listened impatiently to the dial tone.

Ring…ring…ring…

_Pick up, pick up… _I thought as I tried to send subliminal messages through the line. I stared at an empty bench on the other side of the street and felt a shiver run down my spine at the thought of what possible fate awaited me otherwise.

Ring… ring… ring…

Click.

My heart jumped.

"Moshi Moshi?" My heart made another leap.

"Sorry, but I am not available at the moment… so please leave a message after" I hung up and sighed as I heard the phone click and swallow up 10 of my total wealth.

Great. Now what was I going to do?

I left the phone booth in disappointment and then…

Ring. Ring.

I picked it up before the third ring.

"Hello…?"

* * *

I stood uncertainly just outside Nishi Street which led to a long line of cheap and identical terrace houses.They were typical early 1960s buildings constructed under the government's development plan to use the cheapest materials to accommodate the poorest people in the region. Today, the area housed mostly people on the brink of poverty, namely widows, single mothers, estranged wives, bankrupt stockbrokers and low-level criminals. And today, another category would join the already rather colourful bunch whether she wanted to or not - the abandoned teen.

I had been standing on the corner for almost 20 minutes now. Standing just outside the path of no return. Yes. I felt ashamed. I didn't want to be a part of 'that' kind of community. And most of all I didn't want to accept the cold hard truth that I really didn't have much of a choice. I was good at denial and so I continued standing there, pretending to be waiting for a friend. The harsh wind pierced my skin and I wrapped my arms around myself as I realised that I had forgotten to bring a jacket in my haste. An elderly gentleman in a trench coat passed me on the street and gave me a warm smile. My teeth were clattering by then and I attempted to smile back weakly.

"Can I help you, hun?"the kind man asked, just as I was wondering the very same thing.

However, before I could answer him, he began to open up his trench coat. At first I thought he was going to offer his coat to me. Then, as his smile turned into more of a grin I thought perhaps he was trying to sell me stolen watches. However both those theories proved to be entirely incorrect, as his coat dropped to the ground.

EEP!

I looked away, but it was too late. My innocence and appetite had already been taken away. And so I did the next best thing. I ran. I ran into the dark and narrow street and kept running as if I could leave the string of bad luck behind. I kept running and the road kept on getting longer and longer until I felt like I couldn't run anymore. I looked behind me, but there was no sign of the old geezer.

Phew!

I took a moment to catch my breath before taking a look around at my surroundings.

The street was even shoddier than it appeared from the outside. The air reeked of decaying food and mould and the neighbours appeared to be competing in a 'whose lawn is taller, weedier, and smellier' contest. I glanced at the nearest house.

Number 4/129.

_Hmmm… that's right next to…_

And then I saw it… the most horrible image I had ever seen during my young life, made only more horrifying by the fact that I, gulp, would have to live there. The house itself was identical to all the other houses on the street, plain and clad in cheap metal sidings. However, the front lawn put all the other lawns to shame. The grass, along with a mass of weeds, was almost my height, and scattered across the lawn was an assortment of rubbish - plastic bags, rotten food and who knew what else. It appeared that this abandoned property had become a littering ground for passers-by.

_There is a little problem with the place, _the uncle on the phone had told me, but I assured him that I would be able to take care of it. As so I must.

Using my school bag to shield my face, I brushed aside the tall weeds with my free arm. After much struggle, I finally managed to navigate my way to the front door… only to find it was sealed with large timber planks. And so I laughed. I laughed at my own bad luck and I laughed at what a fool I had been and I laughed and laughed and laughed until it hurt and I felt hot tears burning down my face. I banged the back of my head on the door as if the physical pain might numb away the emotional. It didn't help, for all I felt was more pain and so I tried again and again, until all I could think of was the throbbing pain in my head and then BANG. I felt something hit me on the head and as it fell into my hands, I realised that it was one of the wooden planks. I turned around and cautiously pulled at another plank. It came off quite easily. Too easily. And that was when I realised that the doors and windows weren't really sealed. They were only made to look like they were. I suddenly felt my life literally glow a little brighter, but only by a little as I pulled one plank after another off the walls and threw open the door to the dark and dingy room inside.

I tried a light switch near the door.

Hmmm… no electricity. I took a few candles out of my backpack (a backup for those days when you forgot to pay the bills, or couldn't afford to) and lit them, balancing them carefully on the counter. I trailed my fingers across the surface and collected a handful of dust, and as the candlelight glimmered playfully on my hand, I allowed the dust, the history of the place, to slowly filter through my fingers.

_A family must've lived here, once upon a time…_

I grabbed my washcloth and ran it over the old oak table next to the counter, carving a clear path through the layers of dust.

_A small family… _I thought, spotting three chairs, each taking up a corner of the square table.

I made more irregular patterns on the table as I imagined how it must've been.

_A mama, a papa and a child... no… _I spotted a picture frame in the corner of the window-sill and took it in my hands and drew a deep breath before letting it all out… I laughed as some of the ancient powder splattered in my face and the photo began to reveal itself… _and a boy! A mischievous little boy he must've been… _I could tell from his cheeky smile.

I moved onto the floors, dipping a newly cobweb-ridden mop into a neglected bucket. As the water swirled under the pressure of the mop, both mop and bucket appeared to have been brought back to life. With a mop in one hand and a feather duster (that I had found in one of the cupboards) in the other, I began to work. And as I did, I felt as if I was uplifting this imaginary (or perhaps not so imaginary) cloth that had been suffocating the place for so long, and as I slowly lifted its load, the place began to trust me, and as I rejuvenated the very fibres of the house, I began to unveil one mystery after another – a "World's Best Mum" mug, once broken but taped back together, lying forgotten under the kitchen counter, an old basketball trading card buried in the couch, an old family portrait hidden a pillow.

_They weren't very well off, this family of three. In fact, they were quite poor and yet… they were happy for they appreciated every moment that they shared with each other. _I wrapped my arms around the photo as I lay down on the small futon bed in the corner of the room, the only corner in the whole house that wasn't dusty for some reason. But I was too exhausted to care as the overly stressful and tiring day was finally overcoming me. As I felt my eyelids growing heavier and heavier, I clutched my fingers around the frame more tightly, envying this imaginary family and thinking, why couldn't I have the same?

* * *

Some time later, a door opened and an exhausted Sakuragi Hanamichi walked in. Running his fingers under the counter near the door, he found the hidden switch beneath one of the drawers and flipped it on.

The basketball practice today had been intense and he couldn't wait to crawl under the covers of his bed.

Then, as his eyes slowly adjusted to the light and the room came into view, he gasped.

_What the hell happened in here!_

**Disclaimer: Most of the characters belong to Inoue-san, I just delve deeper into their character**

**Authoress' Note: **As always huge thanks to everyone who has reviewed, its means a lot to me to know that people are actually reading this little fic . Also thanks to my beta readers, hopefully my grammar would keep on improving…hehe

Yun Fei: hehe…well…it's not exactly SakuragixOC since Wa is already in the anime. But yes, I think I will concentrate on SakuragixWa for the moment in case I end up confusing myself. And if there is an opportunity for Rukawa to step in… hehehe

Iced T: I'm still learning to respect it. eats the gold star…hmmm…chocolate covered wrapping…

Calliope Medina Erato: Sorry, I'm not too familiar with the names of the grades so sorry for confusing you. I have fixed it. At the time, Wa was a first year just like Sakuragi and Rukawa. Now they are in second year.

Eliar Swiftfire: hehe…the first part was inspired by a conversation I had with a friend. Oh well…as for the name thing, I think it still makes sense…it gives a feeling as if being friends with those girls took away a part of her identity from the very beginning.

Momo: Well, I suppose it's the fact that people cannot accept the things that Wa has done in the first act that she had so much trouble fitting in.

biggest anime fan: Thanks for reviewing For the moment there will be no triangles because I don't want to force any triangles from happening.

frozenfemale: I'm glad you enjoyed it.


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